1. Registration trouble? Please use the "Contact Us" link at the bottom right corner of the page and your issue will be resolved.
    Dismiss Notice

Wrong Gears On Carrier

Discussion in 'Early CJ5 and CJ6 Tech' started by Mr Vaughan, May 18, 2021.

  1. would it be possible to put my 5.38 gears on a 3.73 carrier? i believe that is the point of this spacer Roxor Ring Gear Spacer
    but for roxor stuff. is there something similar that i could use?
     
  2. Oldpappy

    Oldpappy A.C. Fults - Curmudgeon at large 2022 Sponsor

    I am assuming your axle is a Dana 44. If so, as long as your 5.38 gears are from a Dana 44 and not a Dana 41 I think you should be able to use them without a spacer.
     
  3. oldtime

    oldtime oldtime

    First off the ring gear is mounted onto a differential case. The differential case is fitted inside the carrier.
    For D44 axles the series IV differential cases can accept 3.92 ratios through 5.38 ring gears.
    The D44 series III cases accept 3.73 and higher gear ratios .
    Higher gear ratios have numerically lower numbers.
     
  4. sorry, excuse my mistake.
    i want to put 5.38's on a 3.73 carrier, it's a cheaper option than what i could find.

    they do sell thick gears to make up for this, but they're probably expensive.

    i want to get a lsd from a member here, but it's set up for high gears. i could get thick gears for an additional $200, but i don't think it'd be worth it at that point.
    what i want to do is change to an lsd, which has a different case set up for 3.73's. read about carrier breaks here: Carrier Breaks for Differentials Explained
     
  5. anything i can find online says it's a carrier, and i refer to what you call the carrier as the center section. i may, and sometimes am, wrong though, so feel free to explain.
     
  6. oldtime

    oldtime oldtime

    Yes lots and lots of so people who should know better have there terms all mixed up.
    Don’t just take my word, I am not the authority.
    Dana Spicer and jeep are the sole authorities here.
    Jeep specifically refers to the part that bolts to a ring gear as being the “differential”.
    Just look in any Willys or Jeep parts book.
    Go to the Dana Spicer web site and search the term “carrier”.
    “Center section” is a pretty good layman’s term for the “carrier”. It distinguishes the “carrier section” from the remainder of the weldment called the “axle housing”. The layman’s “center section” properly defined is the “carrier”.
    And the carrier, carries the differential unit.
    Furthermore the main casting portion of any complete differential assembly is called the differential “case”.
     
    Last edited: May 18, 2021
  7. jeepstar

    jeepstar Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    no. its a series 4 carrier. you cannot mix and match series 3 and 4 gearing.
     
  8. Buildflycrash

    Buildflycrash More or Less in Line. 2024 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Not true, around here, you pretty much are.
     
    jeeper50 likes this.
  9. 73 cj5

    73 cj5 Not ready for the junkyard yet

    It's cheaper to buy a "lunchbox" type locker instead of having to buy new gears, rebuild kit for the D44, and not to mention set up bearings if you want to make things easier. Oh and don't forget the initial cost of the limited slip.
     
  10. someone was selling one for $250, i was wondering if i could just use it. a lunchbox is only a litlle more, probably the way i'm gonna go. just curious.
     
  11. you can, just with special gears. thick 5.38 gears can be put on a 3.73 carrier, as they're cut thicker to allow it.
     
  12. Daryl

    Daryl Sponsor

    All of the new Wranglers only use a 3 series carrier/case. So the "thick" gears are plentiful and no longer a big thing. Other then on this forum it is always called a carrier. If you are going to buy something Noone is going to know what a "case" is.
     
  13. garage gnome

    garage gnome ECJ5 welder

  14. oldtime

    oldtime oldtime

    From what I’ve seen Dana Spicers terms may possibly be changing. IDK
    But in the link you provided what they show is a complete differential assembly minus the ring gear.
    To me the somewhat confusing term “carrier case” is implying a case that is used within in the carrier.
     
  15. Howard Eisenhauer

    Howard Eisenhauer Administrator Staff Member

    It's all Pumpkin to me :sneak:

    Or we could all settle on "Diffy" :twist:
     
    Dandy and Buildflycrash like this.
  16. SIDSCJ

    SIDSCJ Jeep addict

    Call it whatever you want, the big question is: Are we gonna help the kid with no money spend his money, or not?:watch:
     
  17. colojeepguy

    colojeepguy Colorado Springs

    :n::n::n::censored:
     
    wheelie and jpflat2a like this.
  18. jeepermc

    jeepermc Active Member

    Gotta be careful with that. JK 44 gears can be made to work with a some grinding and the correct bearings as the ring gear is a larger diameter. I think. There are alot of nuances with using "wrangler gears". Definitely not a bolt in. JL "dana 44" is in name only. Completely different animal compared to a Dana 44 as we know it.

    The funniest part about "thick gears" is that they didn't exist until the TJ Rubicon came around... And the only reason they do, is because one of the engineers provided the wrong offset specs to the Japanese company that built the TJ Rubicon lockers for the 4.10 gears they received. Rather than fix that mistake directly, they came up with thick gears to use the now existing lockers.
     
  19. Daryl

    Daryl Sponsor

    We were making spacers thirty years ago too.
     
  20. jeepermc

    jeepermc Active Member

    There should be spacers available, but I don't think the Roxor spacer will work. The Roxor offset is its own offset and gear. The Roxor offset is right between the standard 3 and 4 series diffs.